Special Delivery
by AquaTurquoise
Summary: Sofia talks Cedric into going door to door in her old village, delivering gifts to the less fortunate.


Special Delivery

Summary: Sofia talks Cedric into going door to door in her old village, delivering gifts to the less fortunate.

Disclaimer: I do not own Sofia the First or the characters. (PS—I haven't owned anything in the last several stories either, since I forgot to post this. Lol)

A/N: This has a bit of a "timeline," so we'll say this takes place before the newest episode of Sofia the First of "Winter's Gift." :)

"What time do we need to be back to the castle?" Cedric asked Sofia as they walked into the village she once inhabited.

She smiled up at him as she held a bag full of gifts that they and the twins had previously wrapped. "I told Mom we'd be back in about an hour or two. That way, we'll have enough time to finish wrapping any last minute gifts for Wassailia."

"That's easy enough," he told her with a chuckle. "I don't really have anything to wrap."

Sofia eyed him curiously. "For _anyone_?" she hinted, producing a sad face to him, making him roll his eyes.

"Very few people receive gifts from me during Wassailia, Sofia. However, don't worry—yours has been prepared for the last month."

She grinned happily and nudged him playfully. "I knew I was your favorite." Her eyes widened slightly as she tripped over an uneven section of ground and accidentally dropped the bag. Luckily, nothing broke or anything, but it had still surprised her.

"Are you all right?" the sorcerer asked in concern, pulling the girl to her feet once more before picking up the bag. "This thing is nearly as big as you are."

The princess smiled and shrugged. "I wanted to make sure we got gifts for everyone."

"Just how many people live in this village anyway?"

The girl looked up, mentally counting. "Um… I'd say at least about a hundred."

"A _hundred_?" Cedric gaped at her. "And we're delivering gifts to _everyone_?"

She nodded with a bright smile. "We get the opportunity to have a great Wassailia in the comfort of a warm castle, Mr. Cedric… They don't."

He sighed, realizing she was right. "You and your diplomatic approach to everything." Hearing her giggle, he smiled slightly. "At least we know that you would in fact make a great queen someday."

Sofia tilted her head curiously. "Why do you say that?"

"Because it takes a kind and generous heart to care for this many people…and tireless hands, apparently."

She laughed and blushed modestly. "Thanks, Mr. Cedric…"

They diligently delivered all of the gifts to the people in the village except for one final house. The house belonged to an old man who lost his wife the previous Wassailia and had no children or grandchildren to speak of. Sofia had seen him a few times and often wondered about him.

She raised her hand to knock on the door before hesitating.

"What's the matter?" Cedric asked, blinking down at her.

"I, um… I heard this man lost his wife last year, and I'm a little worried he'll think we're pitying him if we give him this gift."

"Oh, honestly, Sofia…" Cedric shook his head and reached forward, knocking on the door. "You've just got to be confident, and everything will be—"

"Go away!" a man's voice snapped from behind the door, making the two friends jump back slightly and exchange glances.

"See?" the girl challenged with a frown of defeat. "I guess we'll just have to skip him."

"I don't think so." Cedric used his wand to unlock the door and open it.

"Mr. Cedric!"

An older man, his pale blue eyes rather stormy and his disheveled white hair tied back in a loose ponytail, glared around at the two castle dwellers. "Are you two deaf?" he demanded with a grumpy voice. "I said go away!"

"Sir," Cedric began with a disbelieving tone, "do you have _any_ idea to whom you're speaking in such a manner?" He gestured toward the young girl beside him. "This is Princess Sofia of Enchancia."

"And?" the man responded, less than amused or impressed.

The sorcerer blinked before stumbling slightly in his words, "A-And? And you should care! She's royalty! And here to deliver a gift to you, though I fail to see why."

"And just who are _you_, anyway?"

"I'm Cedric the Sensational," he said proudly, making Sofia smile lightly at the use of her nickname for him, "formally recognized as Cedric the Royal Sorcerer of Enchancia. Eh, actually I'm still recognized as that—but that's neither here nor there. Now, please accept Sof—_Princess_ Sofia's gift of Wassailia so we can be on our way."

"No." The man slammed the door in their faces, making Cedric huff in annoyance and Sofia sigh in disappointment.

Cedric paused and tapped his wand to his chin in thought. "Perhaps we could…"

"…Just leave him alone like he wants?" Sofia asked in disappointment.

He scoffed. "Of course not. He's not going to have his way on this. You wanted to deliver every single Wassailia gift personally to each person in the village, and if it takes us all night, that's what you're going to do."

The princess eyed her friend curiously. "Why do you care so much about this, Mr. Cedric?"

He simply smiled and placed a hand on her head gently. "Because _you_ do…and I can see how much it means to you."

She returned his smile and hugged him happily. "Thank you, Mr. Cedric…" Renewed with a fresh sense of confidence, the princess turned from her friend's embrace and knocked on the door, waiting for the man once more.

The village man sighed loudly and opened the door, only to face the princess this time. "What?"

Sofia mustered as much of a sincere smile as she could, which was a little more difficult when the man was behaving in such a way. "Sir," she began gently, making him blink, "may we offer you a gift on behalf of the Royal Family of Enchancia? It would mean a lot to me…"

He stared at her a few moments, baffled by her steadfastness and willingness to make even him, a grumpy older man, feel appreciated. He sighed. "Very well. You might as well come in, both of you." He stepped aside, allowing the two friends inside.

Cedric looked around at the modest dwelling and shivered slightly, wrapping his arms deeper into his robe. "Aren't you cold here?"

"I don't have any wood for a fire right now, so I wrap up in layers of clothing." He sat down in a chair and motioned for them to sit on the sofa across from him, which they did. "What were your names again?"

"I'm Sofia," Sofia announced brightly. "And this is Mr. Cedric. He's my friend and our sorcerer." She smiled gently. "And what is your name?"

"I'm Henry, a former blacksmith." He rubbed his hands together and blew on them. "Of course, clearly, I haven't been able to focus on that trade in a long time."

"Mr. Henry, I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but why are you so mean?"

Cedric raised an eyebrow at the rather forward question from his apprentice but waited to hear the other man's answer.

Henry actually chuckled. "I suppose being old, isolated, and widowed does that to a man. You may find this hard to believe, but I'm the most avoided man in the village."

"With such a sunny disposition?" Cedric asked sarcastically, garnering a smirk from Henry. "It's amazing how people respond, isn't it?" Seeing the man actually crack a small smile before coughing, Cedric frowned. "Hmm." He looked toward the empty fireplace and then toward Sofia. "I'll be right back."

The young girl blinked as her mentor left, shutting the door behind him. She looked back at Henry. "So…"

"So…"

"What do you like to do for fun?" she asked nicely, trying to strike up a conversation, wishing Cedric hadn't left her alone with someone who apparently didn't feel like talking.

"Fun?" the man asked, tilting his head in slight confusion.

"Yeah, you know… Fun!" She giggled. "I like to practice magic, play with the animals in our garden, spend time with my friends and family, sing…"

"I'm afraid there isn't much fun to be had for me these days, young princess." He leaned back in his chair. "When my wife Abigail passed away last year, my days of fun pretty much dwindled down to nothing. Although I do enjoy a nice cup of cocoa on occasion."

The princess lit up at this mention. "Oh, good…" She reached into her very flat bag that had once held several presents. She walked over and handed him the gift. "Happy Wassailia, Mr. Henry."

He blinked at her and opened the gift, seeing a jar full of cocoa mixture and even a recipe tied to the top.

"You just need to add some hot water. It will make the most delicious cup of cocoa you have ever tasted. Our chef, Mr. Andre, created it." She smiled uncertainly. "Do you…like it?"

He glanced up at her. "W-Well, I…"

The door opened, and in walked Cedric with an armful of wood. He deposited it into the fireplace before dusting off his robe and hands.

Sofia smiled brightly. "Is that what you were doing?"

"Mm… _Incendo_." He pointed his wand at the wood and lit a fire that immediately warmed up the entire house.

Henry raised his eyebrows in surprise. "So about this sorcery thing…it seems to be rather useful."

Cedric smirked at him. "It has its advantages. Consider it _my_ Wassailia gift."

Sofia pondered for a few moments as she watched Henry look between the fire and the jar of cocoa mix before she smiled slowly. "Mr. Henry…"

"Yes, Princess?" he asked calmly, relieved at some of the warmth that now flowed over him.

She walked over and took his hands, surprising him. "I'd like to invite you to the castle tonight as our guest."

"M-Me? But I'm hardly dressed for such a thing."

Sofia smiled back toward her friend. "Mr. Cedric?"

Rolling his eyes but smiling lightly, he pointed his wand at Henry and muttered a few words that transformed his villager clothing into a warmer set of red and blue clothing. There was even an "H" embroidered on the side of his new coat.

"For me?" he asked in disbelief.

"For you," Sofia told him gently with a smile. "Now come on! You need to meet everyone, and they'd love to meet you!"

"Yes," Cedric drawled sarcastically, "you and your oh-so-cheerful demeanor…"

Henry smirked. "I get it. I'm a bit of a Scrooge. But given the circumstances…"

"You're still a good person," Sofia concluded, smiling.

Henry was able to spend some time with the Royal Family and get away from his silent and somewhat cheerless house for a while. He returned much happier than he had been in a year.

Sofia hummed as she walked down the hallway with Cedric later that night before they paused, about to head in different directions.

"You're sure happy," Cedric told her, rolling his eyes as she grabbed his hand to twirl around while still humming. "If doing good deeds makes you this happy…how would you react to actually _receiving_ one?"

She grinned. "I think you know that better than anyone, Mr. Cedric. You took me on as an apprentice, whether you wanted to or not, and we ended up being really good friends. That's my experience, and the best gift I could have gotten."

"_My_ friendship?" he muttered in curiosity. "Hmm…" He blinked as she hugged him again, making him chuckle. "Good night, Sofia."

"It _was_ a good night, wasn't it?" She smiled up at him before waving as she turned and skipped toward her room for the night. She stopped half way down the hallway and turned, calling out, "Mr. Cedric?"

"Yes?" he asked, looking back toward her.

"Thank you."

He smiled and chuckled. "You're welcome, Sofia."

The end!

A/N: Thanks to agentgiggles27 for coming up with the name "Henry." I actually want to bring this guy back in a future story, but it will be a while. Anyway, this is probably my last Wassailia/Christmas themed story for the year, but who knows? Knowing me, I'll probably have something random pop into my head and have to go with it. Haha. I hope everyone is doing well, and Happy Winter 2014! :) Look for the next chapter of Timey Wimey sometime tomorrow. ~AquaTurquoise


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